Flashlight bracket



April 1955 s. J. PHILIPSON 2,707,223

FLASHLIGHT BRACKET Filed Jan. 29, 1952 INVENTOR S tanl'ey J F1551 blpson BY lglTTORNEY E United States Patent FLASHLIGHT BRACKET Stanley J. Philipson, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application January 29, 1952, Serial No. 268,847

2 Claims. (Cl. 240--52.5)

This invention relates to a signalling device and more particularly to a bracket and support for a signalhng device, such as a portable flashlight.

My invention has for its object the provision of a signalling device which may be supported on the roadway or ground on such emergency as may require halting an automobile on a roadway for repalr or similar adjustment.

It is an object of my invention to provide a signalling device which autoists may support on .the ground to attract the attention of oncoming drivers at night, 1n order to avoid accidentally colliding with the disabled vehicle and endangering those who may be engaged in making repairs, such as changing tires or the llke.

It is an object of my invention to provide a bracket which may support upon the ground in a signalling position a large variety of illuminating devices, such as flashlights, and to advantageously support unattended such devices to project a distinctively visible danger signal, permitting resort to the use of a wide variety of flashli hts.

To attain these objects and such further objects as may appear herein or be hereinafter pointed out, I make reference to the accompanying drawing forming a part hereof, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating the bracket or standard in accordance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a front magnified view thereof;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary section taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a front view of another embodiment of my invention;

Figure 5 is a section taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Making reference to the drawing, I provide a flash light support comprising a tubular housmg 11 having, at one end, a bezel 12 retaining a lens 13. The lens which is illustrated has a faceted, molded surface of transparent plastic or glass capable of transmitting light and scattering it in a plurality of directions to cover a wide area and, in combination with the protuberances 14, tends to be auto-collimating to incident light. The combination forms a socket 15 within which the head of a flashlight may be housed. The over-all dimensions of the socket 15 are great enough to permit a wide tolerance of encasement for popular sizes of flashlights.

From the socket 15 there extend supporting arms 16 and 17, coupled by a cradle strap 18 at its ends 19 and 20. A standard 21 is formed of a supporting base segment 22 and side branches 23, 24, the ends 25 and 26 of which are coupled to the cradle pivotally by rivets 27 and 28, respectively, which engage the arms with sufficient friction to sustain a predetermined angular position without manual adjustment, but which may be manipulated to accommodate the device to various positions.

The standard 21 may accordingly be adjusted angularly in the direction of the arrows 29, to have the branches 23 lie in a common plane with the arms 16 and 17 for compactness of transportation or storage, or to be adjusted to have the base 22 supported on the ground and permit angular tilting of the socket portion 15 upwardly. In this position a flashlight F may have its head H encased within the socket, and to extend the end B on the ground, forming a triangular support when resting on the saddle 18.

It will be observed that a large variety of tubular flashlights may thus be held for the desired signal and when illuminated, project the rays through the lens 13 to give a distinctive signal. Thus, the device may be set at a safe distance behind a disabled vehicle to provide, at nighttime, the desired danger signal. A Wide variety of flashlight casings may be held rested on the saddle, accommodating these popular sized devices for ordinary use but making them readily and equally available where it is desired to have these clear flashlights serve as signalling devices for disabled vehicles.

It will likewise be observed that by providing an openended socket with a cradle, the flashlight may have its lens portion tilted in the reverse direction so that the rim or bezel portion may rest on the ground, in which event the heel or butt end E of the flashlight may be encased within the socket, where it is desired to project the flashlight beam on some object, to avoid the necessity for holding the flashlight manually in a desired position.

It will be understood that the socket portion 11 may be made of metal with a separately formed lens of transparent material or glass or the socket and lens may be made entirely of transparent plastic, readily moldable material, such as Celluloid or its substitutes, to provide a signalling area of extended size through the side walls 11 as Well as through the lens 13.

For purposes of illustrating further adaptability to provide a signal of extended area, I make reference to Figures 4 and 5 where another embodiment of my invention is shown. In this construction the casing 11a is fitted with a disk 13a which has a central boring 30, forming a press fit over the lens 13b, fitted within the bezel 12a. The disk may be made of Lucite or like transparent plastic material, colored red, as is the lens 13b, and having the property of edgewise transmission of light characteristic of such glasses as quartz. In this manner, the head of the support at the signalling portion may be employed not only to provide an auto-collimating lens but an extended signalling area.

It will thus be observed that I have provided a support for existing flashlights of various lengths, diameters and sizes which may readily be put to use for signalling or flashing a projected light beam in a predetermined angular direction, so that a low cost item is held available for the desired purpose while the less durable and more expensive flashlight is free for use for its ordinary purposes of illumination.

Having thus described my invention and illustrated its use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A signalling support for flashlights having an openended enveloping cylindrical tube provided at one end thereof with an open mouth and a socket of wide size tolerance to encase an open end of a flashlight, a lenticular transparent closure at the other end of said socket, a pair of spaced arms rigidly connected with the socket and extending substantially in parallelism with the walls of the tube from the mouth of the cylinder, an angularly adjustable cradle for the body of the flashlight supported by the free ends of the arms, and standards pivotally connected to the ends of the arms whereby the encased flashlight may cooperate with the socket angularly to support the flashlight for a variety of sizes and lengths of such flashlights, with the illuminating end of the flashlight being shielded at its side edges by the socket and the other end of the flashlight acting as a brace for the standard.

2. A signalling support in accordance with claim 1 wherein said closure has a collar comprising an edgewise transmission light distributing material.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,363,132 Lander et a1. Dec. 21, 1920 1,363,664 Livingston Dec. 28, 1920 1,649,638 Wood Nov. 15, 1927 2,247,131 Muldoon June 24, 1941 2,253,952 Desimone Aug. 26, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS 814,727 France Mar. 22, 1937 

